1. Introduction
Masculinity refers to the social construction of what it means to be a “man” in a particular social context [
1,
2]. Taken this way, masculinity is fluid and adaptable with respect to history, culture, and time [
1,
2]. In western societies such as the US, traditional, that is to say hegemonic masculinity, is associated with traits such as competitiveness, emotional detachment, dominance, autonomy, being physically tough, and heterosexuality [
1,
2,
3,
4,
5]. Constructing masculinity this way within western society, means that it is not the purview of all men. Rather, as scholars such as Genoe and Singleton (2006) note, hegemonic masculinity within the West belongs to those who are “Caucasian, heterosexual, middle class, and in their early midlife,” [
2]. Though often the top of the racial hierarchy within the West, it has been argued that strong adherence to hegemonic forms of masculinity places men at a disadvantage through its restrictive nature [
5]. Within the context of health in particular, hegemonic masculinity has been discussed as shaping various health behaviors including eating habits, recovery from injury, exercise, and the deterioration of one’s mental state [
2]. Furthermore, research contends that men face qualitatively different health disparities compared to women including higher mortality rates from 12 of the 15 leading causes of death, lower life spans overall, and a greater lifetime risk of developing certain cancers [
5,
6].
In order to better understand these processes, it is necessary to consider the role of social and cultural factors play on shaping these behaviors [
5]. Though earlier scholarship has focused on hegemonic forms of masculinity, contemporary research is paying attention to the role that social characteristics such as race, ethnicity, class, and sexuality play in how men construction their own masculine ideals [
2,
7]. This is especially important for Black men whose health continues to be worse than nearly all other racial/ethnic groups in the United States [
8,
9]. This paper utilizes the term Black, as opposed to African American as an inclusive term for members of the African diaspora. Though the majority of the participants in this study identify as African American, there are participants who were born outside of the US and/or have roots beyond the United States. From a historical standpoint, the life expectancy of Black men in the United States has consistently been lower than that of whites and other racial/ethnic groups of men [
8,
9]. The leading causes of death among Black men include diabetes, heart disease, stroke, unintentional injuries, kidney disease, cancer, chronic lower respiratory disease, and homicide [
10]. As to why Black men continue to experience poorer health needs continued exploration and is in the process of expanding [
8,
9].
One issue that has been discussed when it comes to the study of Black men and health is that it is often contextualized through a lens of racial/ethnic health disparities [
9]. Though racial and ethnic health disparities are an important avenue of exploration, what is often missing from examination is the role that gender plays in the lived experiences of Black men when it comes to shaping their health and well-being [
8,
9]. A second issue that arises is the comparative nature of research on Black men’s health that juxtaposes them against either Black women or other racial/ethnic groups of men [
8,
9]. Black men exist in a unique space with respect to social norms, physical environment, socioeconomic circumstances, and cultural patterns that shape their health and well-being [
9]. Research that focuses exclusively on Black men then can highlight the specific mechanisms and pathways that influence their experiences of health. One area of study that is expanding when it comes to the study of health is that of the role of religion [
11,
12,
13,
14]. Religion remains an influential part of Black communities [
15,
16] and thus within the lives of Black men. Current research on religion and health has examined how religious involvement tends to contribute to healthier lifestyles [
12,
13,
17]; however, focus on food and eating with respect to religion and health requires further exploration.
The goal of this paper is to examine how adherence to aspects of Black masculinity including faith (contextualized as spiritual religiosity) shape Black men’s experiences of food and eating. Food and eating shape overall health and well-being [
18] and play a role in religion as well. Examining the role that faith has on food can provide new insight into underlying mechanisms tied to health and well-being. Furthermore, by using Black masculinity as a lens, this paper will contribute to the growing literature on Black men and health. Thus this paper provides a qualitative account of food and eating as driven by faith-based experiences (predominantly Christian-based beliefs) and notions of Black masculinity. First, this paper provides an overview of Black masculinity, followed by a discussion of the status of Black men and health. Next, this paper examines the relationship between health and faith, followed by a discussion of faith, food, and health. Following a discussion of the methodological considerations, the qualitative analyses offer narrative accounts of Black men’s experiences of food and eating with respect to faith. Understanding such processes can lend insight into the overall health and well-being of Black men in the United States.
1.1. Black Masculinity
Black men experience socialization differently than their White male counterparts; as such, Black men experience a different social reality and thus embody different forms of masculine identity [
8,
19,
20]. Historically, Black masculinity was framed as a “problem,” (not just to the Black family but to the nation as a whole), and thus, Black men were framed as troubled or deviant [
7] with research suggesting that Black men were sexually permissive (hypersexual) [
21,
22] and failed to provide for their families [
23]. These early conceptualizations of Black masculinity were shaped largely by racist understandings of Black men tied to the legacies of slavery and Jim Crow in particular. Later discussions of Black masculinity still focused on its supposed dysfunctionality but also proposed that Black men enacted certain behaviors as a means of pushing back against racist oppression [
7,
19,
24]. One means that Black men have used to push back against racist assumptions is the notion of “the cool pose” [
19]. The “cool pose” functions as a “ritualized form of masculinity that entails behaviors, scripts, physical posturing, impression management, and carefully created performances to deliver a single, critical message: pride, strength, and control” (p. 4). In a society in which Black men are perpetuality criminalized and dehumanized, the “cool pose” offers an alternative form of Black masculinity. However, while the critical message of “pride, strength and control” pushes back against ideas of Black men as being uncontrollable “bucks” [
22], “posturing” suggests a certain inauthenticity [
7]
Research conducted on Black men’s own conceptualizations of their manhood paint a slightly different picture. Studies of urban Black men conducted by Hunter and Davis [
25,
26] noted four domains of Black masculine identity: (1) self-determination and accountability, (2) family, (3) pride, and (4) spirituality and humanism. Such conceptualizations push back against ideas of Black men as absent fathers [
23] or as thugs [
22]. The work by Hammond and Mattis 2005 built upon this earlier research, showcasing overlap as well as expansions. While spirituality-religiosity, accountability, and family centeredness were revealed by the Black men in their study, so too were characteristics such as leadership and guidance, community involvement, and more [
7]. Black masculine identity is complex and must be contextualized by the ways in which Black men are regarded as racialized, gendered, and sexualized human beings [
22,
27]. Research on Black masculinity that does not recognize the matrix of domination [
27] under which Black men live, misses the unique position in which Black men’s experiences are situated. Black men’s experiences should not be considered additive or comparative to those of Black women but as their own set of unique circumstances that shape their lived experiences; including that of food and eating and overall health and well-being.
1.2. Black Men and Health
Of all racial/ethnic groups in the US, Black men continue to have the shortest life expectancy [
9,
20]. Furthermore, when it comes to the leading causes of death and disability within US society, Black men suffer disproportionately [
8]. Specifically, chronic health conditions such as heart disease, hypertension, prostate cancer, and diabetes are issues that impact Black men’s rate of mortality, which are often higher than those of other race/gender groups [
8]. Research on Black men and health has highlighted these issues, as well as the fact that Black men have a disproportionately high incidence as well as prevalence of dying from HIV/AIDS, particularly among young Black men [
8]. Men in general experience poorer health than women, yet the experiences of Black men highlight the importance of examining health disparities with an intersectional lens [
8]. Though research has identified behavioral factors that partially explain gendered differences in health, research that emphasizes the experiences of Black men in particular merits further investigation. In general, men are said to engage in behaviors such as smoking, substance abuse, violence, and unsafe driving at higher rates than their female counterparts. However, research also contends that Black men are
less likely to participate negative health practices such as smoking and excessive drinking [
20]; however, the negative health consequences of such behaviors are higher for Black men in the US [
20].
There is no denying that Black men in America are subjected to experiences and expectations that vary from those of other racial/ethnic groups (well as Black women), and that many of these experiences negatively impact their health. Research highlights that Black men are more likely to live in poverty, which may explain health disparities as a result of differences in income as well as wealth [
28,
29]. However, even for middle class Black men, health disparities remain [
28]. Beyond the experiences of diminished returns with respect to income and wealth, Black men are also exposed to heightened policing and criminalization as a result of racist attitudes and practices that contribute to an increase in social and physiological stressors that negatively impact health [
8]. Black men in America are socialized with respect to race, gender, class, and more within the matrix of social categories that drive life chances, thereby making their experiences qualitatively different from those of members of other racial/ethnic as well as gendered groups [
8,
9,
20].
The study of faith and health continues to grow. Considering the importance of faith within Black communities, it is an ideal avenue for the exploration of Black men’s health in particular. Though faith is a dominant aspect of Black masculine identity [
7,
25,
26], Black men continue to suffer disproportionately from negative health outcomes. Thus, an in-depth look at faith as an avenue of health promotion through qualitative inquiry warrants close attention.
1.3. Faith and Health
Faith has many meanings within society. Over the past several decades studies have highlighted the ways that religious involvement conceptualized as “observable feelings, beliefs, activities, and experiences in relation to the spiritual, divine, or supernatural” (p. 239, [
12]) contributes to better health outcomes such a lowered risk of mortality [
12,
13]. Often, the terms, religion, spirituality, and faith are used interchangeably within health literature [
30]. Within the context of this paper, I will rely on the term “faith” to discuss spiritual-religiosity as “seeking guidance about one’s behavior from God, a higher power, spirit, religious texts, or leaders; having belief in, relationship with or connection with any of the entities referenced above” [
7]. This definition of faith stems from the work of Hammond and Mattis (2005) that examined how Black men discussed their conceptualization of manhood. As discussed previously, Black men’s experiences of manhood are qualitatively different than those of White men in the US [
7]., Black men seek to “reconstruct traditional markers of masculinity” [
7] (p. 124) by providing for others in a myriad of ways including through the practice of faith [
7].
Research should thus examine the role that faith-based activities may contribute to health promotion of such groups but go beyond the examination of smoking and drinking. While both contribute to overall health, when it comes to the examination of religion and health, these behaviors have been studied. What has been less studied is the experiences of faith-based practices in relation to the experience of food and eating. Like smoking and drinking, food behaviors also matter for overall health [
31]. One aspect of food and eating that should be examined when it comes to faith-based practices and health is the notion of fasting. Fasting is intimately connected to both health and faith yet remains an understudied phenomenon when it comes to the experiences of Black men and their attitudes and health-based behaviors. Though such a practice through the lens of faith cannot account for the experiences of structural racism and racial discrimination within health care contexts, understanding how Black men discuss their relationship with faith and food can shed light on how they perceive and experience their own health and well-being.
1.4. Faith, Food, and Health
How and what we eat is shaped by a myriad of societal factors. For instance, how and what we eat is shaped by our economic circumstances, race, age, and health status [
18,
32]. Furthermore, as Dallam (2014) notes, “Entire cultural groups have explicit rules about foods, and these may include ideas about what foods are encouraged and what foods are taboo, what materials count as food, what specific foods are consumed during rituals and holidays, what kinds of food combinations are acceptable and forbidden how foods must be prepared and what foods must be eaten” (xvii). When faith is added to the mix, what and how individuals eat becomes even more complicated [
32]. According to Dallam (2014), faith and food intersect in many was as several “religions have sacred rituals involving both special foods and acts of consumption” (xviii). Research that examines the relationship between faith and food has the potential to shed light on overall health and well-being.
When it comes to Black communities, food remains a large part of faith culture [
33]. Specifically, Hicks (2004) contends that “food and religious identity are symbolic in nature,” (p. 144), and when it comes to “many Black Baptist churches for example, a Sunday that does not culminate in a meal would be for some sacrilegious” (p. 144). Thus, for some faith-based cultures within the Black community, the Sunday meal is “seen as a primary time for fellowship, and thus a continuation of ministry and worship,” (p. 144). Within these spaces, faith and food function as an aspect of community support, which is beneficial to overall health and well-being. Examining the role of faith on Black men’s experiences of food and eating can illuminate underlying mechanisms that contribute to their overall health.
1.5. The Present Study
The purpose of the present study is to examine the role that aspects of Black masculinity (faith in particular) play in their lived experiences of food and eating. Black men consistently have worse health outcomes than their other racial/ethnic peers; yet research that focuses explicitly on Black men and health remains limited (Gilbert et al. 2016). This study draws on qualitative data in order to explore the health of Black men through the lens of food and eating as shaped by Black masculine identity. Adherence to traditional forms of masculinity, as mentioned previously, can have negative impact on men’s health [
2,
33]. However, research on faith has shown that it can shape health for the better. Faith is a part of Black communities in general [
15,
16] and Black masculine identity in particular [
7] making faith a useful avenue for the study of Black men, health, and well-being. This paper focuses specifically on the experiences of Black men who identify as Christian or hold belief in a secular higher power. Interviews with men of different faith-based backgrounds would likely produce different findings and should be considered for future research.
3. Findings
The narrative accounts detailed below are an attempt to offer qualitative insight into the ways in which Black men experience food and eating through the lens of faith as a dominant aspect of Black masculinity. Black masculinity has been discussed in a myriad of ways over time, from troublesome and deviant [
23] to “inauthentic” and “performative” [
7,
19], to more complex discussions that incorporate several characteristics including faith driven, community focused, and survival-overcoming (resilience) [
7]. The findings of this study suggest that Black middle-class men (as tied to having at least a bachelor’s degree) engaged in fasting as a means of promoting health from two faith-based spaces: (1) religious/spiritual as tied to God and (2) a belief in a higher power and community involvement. One of the unique aspects of these findings is that while the majority of men identify as Christian through the use of their reliance on Biblical texts, the food and eating behaviors that they engage in are not directly tied to denominational proscriptions but rather their own individual interpretations and desires to engage in health based behaviors.
Fasting for God: “So, I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting”
—Daniel 9:3
The Daniel Fast, based on the biblical chapters of Daniel 1–10, is a fast that requires the elimination of commonly enjoyed foods for a period of twenty days as an act designed to bring the individual closer to God. Specifically, the faster is restricted from eating dairy, all meat, sugar (all forms of sweetener), yeast, refined and processed foods, deep fried food, and solid fats [
40]. Thus, the faster is left with fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, and oils exclusively for the twenty-day period. For Daniel, in the biblical sense, the fast was not about denying one’s self foods for foods sake but rather an opportunity to showcase one’s hunger for spiritual foods above the physical. The Daniel fast, named after the biblical text, then, is not a means to emulate the exact menu to which Daniel himself was limited but rather to imitate the spirit in which Daniel fasted [
40]. Though the main purpose behind the fast was to move closer to God on a spiritual level, the food changes that are made shape health outcomes including weight loss and a higher intake of fruit and vegetables among participants. Research notes that many Americans do not meet the dietary guidelines for fruit and vegetable intake and that this is also tied to race and ethnicity [
41]. Though we know the benefits of engaging in increased consumption of fruit and vegetables, not many people do so [
41]. There are several factors that “contribute to this outcome and vary by social and situational family factors” [
41], (p. 8).
One of the factors that contributes to such outcomes is race. Specifically, Black Americans tend to consume fewer fruits and vegetables per day [
41]. Consumption of fruits and vegetables is tied as much to race as it is to access [
41]; however, for Black Americans who have higher rates of mortality and suffer from other health disparities [
8], engaging in activities that increase their fruit and vegetable intake would be beneficial to their overall health and well-being. For Jackson, a 34-year old Black man, the Daniel fast was a means for him to connect not only with his body but also with God. He stated,
“Yeah, Daniel from the Bible. You actually go 21 days only eating and drinking restricted things. You do it at the beginning of the year and that’s a sacrifice to God, showing Him that you’re willing to give these things up for Him. During the fast, you’re allowed to eat any fruits and vegetables, pretty much anything that grows from the ground. But no meats, no seafood, no seasonings other than salt and pepper. No dairy. You’re pretty much restricted for 21 days. I did it last year and it worked pretty well.”
For Jackson, his increase in fruits and vegetables and the elimination of fats and sugars resulted in weight loss, which he viewed as desirable. Jackson continued,
“I did it this year and I actually lost 18 pounds in 21 days. I can honestly say that I felt great during those days…my weight, I felt great. I even bought a smaller pair of jeans.”
Engaging in the practice of fasting was an opportunity to connect with his body, as well as to develop his connection to God. Jackson noted that other than the time he spent doing the Daniel’s fast, his eating habits were not necessarily the best. Specifically, Jackson stated,
“Yeah, I don’t eat healthy, but I make sure I work out, make sure I stay fit so that I don’t become obese. You know it reflects your overall health, and all aspects of your life. It really restricts you from doing things.”
Being obese, for Jackson was a health outcome that he tried to stave off with exercise and an increase in fruits and vegetables for at least one 21-day period throughout the year—the Daniel Fast. Diets that are high in fat but low in fiber are associated with numerous negative health outcomes ranging from certain cancers, to strokes, to heart disease [
41] whereas high fruit and vegetable intake have been shown to act as a protective force against such outcomes [
41]. By engaging in the
Daniel Fast at least once a year, Jackson at least engaged in health promoting behaviors once a year. Faith as an aspect of Black masculinity in Jackson’s case produced at least one health promoting behavior—a yearly increase in fruit and vegetables.
Bryant, 41 and divorced, also noted that his faith played a role in shaping his food and heating habits throughout the year. Bryant noted that he was spiritually affected what and how he eats,
“…So, a lot of things that I’ve eaten, I have to stop. I’m trying to give up pork…someone messed around and showed me a picture of a baby lamb and that when I realized what it was…”
Bryant’s belief in God led him to make changes in his diet, and though he did not practice the Daniel Fast as Jackson did, he did find comfort in the practice of fasting. Bryant noted,
“Fasting, cleansing, spirituality…What I notice is that when I’m fasting, I don’t get headaches or hunger pain, which further empowers me and proves to be that there is evidence of all of that above. God sustains me when I’m hungry. It might be a placebo, but it’s God’s placebo. My spirituality has shown me that I have to stop ingesting things I know are bad for me.”
For Bryant this meant limiting the types of meats and other foods he put into his body as a means of preserving his health in order to adhere to his belief in God. For two of the Black men in my sample of 5, faith was based on religion/spirituality and impacted the ways that they engaged in the practice of fasting; faith as spiritual humanism was an intricate measure in Hunter and Davis’ (1992; 1994) conceptualization of Black masculinity. Nevertheless, participants engagement in fasting was complex, insofar as faith was multifaceted. To that end, faith for the participants in this study was not limited to the scope of religion/spirituality. For one participant, faith was community based and a means to bring health-based practices to their Black community—as a function of family within Hunter and Davis’ (1992; 1994) ideal of Black masculinity.
The Black Health Challenge: “Try to do something good for your people—something difficult…if a man is poor, help him. Give him and his family food…”
—From a Winnebago lesson 1700s
In addition to fasting as a practice of religious/spiritual engagement, Black men in this sample approached fasting as a mechanism of faith within the context of their community—specifically, the Black community of a local large southwestern town, as well as an extended online community. When it comes to conceptualizing Black masculine identities, one of the things that sets it apart from traditional notions of masculinity (e.g., success, aggression, the need to compete) is the culturally specific requirements like “cooperation, promotion of group and group survival” [
25,
26]. In that vein, The Black Health Challenge was taken up as a platform within the local large southwestern town mentioned above and is supported by an online community known as the Black Health support group—a private Facebook group only open to those participating in the challenge. The purpose of the group is to provide virtual, consistent support in the form of recipes, exercise exchanges, and motivational comments for members of this (Black) community in an effort to promote health and well-being. The Facebook support group is comprised of people from across the country according to Andre (33 years old) and offers a space for community connection as they work toward promoting the health of those who identify as Black/African American. Andre a graduate student said when we met in his office during his lunch break,
“…you see me eating peanuts. I’m actually in the middle of a fast, a fruit and vegetable fast. I started a fruit and vegetable fast for fourteen days, nothing but fruits and vegetables for fourteen days…we also began incorporating exercising, so this, I started it, but I got other Black people involved—it’s called the Black Health Challenge. It’s something I’ve done over the last six years, but I really just started getting other people involved in it the last two years or so...I do it every four months…Bringing others into it, I try to do it every two years. I have a friend, he moved back to Tampa, but me and him, we’re both farmers of The Black Health Challenge.”
Andre continued to discuss the challenge as a collective community of the individuals who identified as Black and/or African American. He also discussed his role in the group as being connected to farming and his love of gardening. Andre stated,
“I grow a lot of food. It’s one of my goals to be self-sufficient, anyway that I can, but particularly being able to get to the point where I do not have to go to the grocery store for very many things.”
Andre, though not necessarily invoking God as a higher power, did discuss faith as follows,
“I consider religion or even spirituality as your belief system, so the things you do in your life, the value system that you have…A big part of my value system, at least now, is healthy eating, wellness, and being holistic with your health…Um a big part of that is the community that you’re raised in, the family that you’re raised up in, and all these things that you’re a part of.”
For Andre, organized religion was connected to his past. In reflecting upon that past, he felt that organized religion was associated predominately with foods associated with “poor health.” He recalled,
“One thing I remember was the chicken that used to come about 3:30 pm, that’s when you knew [church] was about to be done, you’d smell the chicken. That fried chicken…you start to understand, really…I went home for my aunt’s funeral and, the same thing, they had chicken and what not, and it brought me back to my childhood, and I realized they had the same diets. Even though I had progressed and moved on with the consciousness, they hadn’t. So, who you are around, and those habits that you have really shape the things you are going to do later, unless something happens, something big happens to change that.”
For Andre, that growth came from the new relationships he was forming, romantic and otherwise, relationships that led him and others to the Black Health Challenge. Though chicken has long been a staple of the Black church community (Williams-Forson 2003), for Andre, it was a relic of the past that contributed to conditions such as diabetes and heart disease that ravaged Black communities. In Black church tradition, chicken or “the gospel bird” (Williams-Forson 2003) was and remains central to the religious experience. For instance, if the reverend were to come to a parishioner’s house for dinner, they would receive the “big piece of chicken” (Williams-Forson 2003). Usually fried but sometimes baked and served in other forms, chicken past and present is central to Black religious traditions (Williams-Forson 2003). For Andre, however, while it was “tradition[al]” and tied to “community” chicken in general, and fried chicken in particular, was responsible (at least in part) for the Black community’s poorer health outcomes.
Though not engaging in the practice of fasting, another of my male participants (n = 5), discussed religious spaces in particular as contributing to the downfall of Black health overall. Samson, a 60-year old man argued,
“I don’t have to go to Sunday dinner and I’m ok with that. I have gone to many church functions, I’ve gone to breakfasts at churches because I’m a health advocate, sometimes I eat the meals and sometimes I don’t. I’ve gotten very good at showing up, socializing, without having to eat a big pile of whatever it is they’re eating and its ok.”
For both Samson and Andre, church and religion were a source of negativity and poor health consciousness, while both Bryant and Jackson looked at organized religion in general, and connotations of Christianity in particular, as spaces in which they could better their health outcomes. Nevertheless, three of the four Black men who discussed fasting and faith (in all of its variations) viewed fasting as a form of health promotion.